Companion
by orthankg1
Summary: This story is meant to be in my community, Truly Unique, which is explained there. These will be companion pieces to the stories in the Comm, a way of saying why they are there and to basically be a public way of patting the authors of these stories on the back. Feel free to leave a review if you want, telling me how wrong/right my opinions are.
1. Skin Deep

**Skin Deep**

**Reason for being in Truly Unique. – First DarkBelle story.**

I will admit. The idea is nothing new, change two characters so that one is playing the role of the other. It's been done countless times for many other fanfics. But skin deep was the first one to ever do it in once upon a time. And I can ask you think of no other characters in the show where someone has taken two characters and swapped them.

And to be honest, there's something just slightly more satisfying out of DarkBelle then one normally gets from reading fiction were someone has done this.

And then there is the fact that in this story there are certain subtle yet enjoyable changes made. The main story stays the same of course, but whenever I've run into role swapping in other fanfics, it's normally been cut and paste with the names and pronouns if it's a male-female swap. But otherwise character A assumes role of character B, and then a does exactly the same things that character B does.

And on the occasions I have seen were someone has made changes story, which I will admit are just as common as when people don't, it only seems little more forced to that should. The characters were stumbling around one another just like they do in the pilot episode of the show, still trying to get a read on what their character should or shouldn't do. And unfortunately the fanfiction doesn't last long enough for the author to flush out said stumbling's.

But the author of this story, DD Agent, has managed to, if you follow the example from earlier, create a pilot that is not awkward and melds rather well. And while sadly she has yet to come out with a sequel to the story, it was nonetheless an enjoyable one off that led to a small but enjoyable group of stories (those that finished at least).


	2. All That Glitters

**All That Glitters**

**Reason for being in Truly Unique. – First GoldxOC story to not set my teeth on edge.**

I will admit to this one being here for purely selfish reasons.

That and LizzeXX is a great author.

I'm going to begin by saying that I do like GoldxOC stories; they are usually good, or if nothing else they are always interesting.

The problem I have with them however, is the reoccurring theme of which most of them fall prey to. Girl meets Rumplestiltskin, girl is desperate, Rumpelstiltskin makes a deal with girl, while deal is being completed they fall in love. Pretty much how him and Belle fell in love. The problem is that the story continues with girl getting to a better place, realizes she is doing terrible things, or that Rumplestilskin is doing terrible things, and so now they're at cross purposes, and the girl usually end up trying to help in trying to foil one of his plans/ foils one of his plans and ends up getting thrown out by Rumple,and/or a surprising number of these stories having the girl helping with the whole crew throwing Rumplestiltskin into jail in the Cinderella deal trap.

I will admit, a lot of good stories have been written following this basic idea; however the problem with it is the fact that if you take a look at it, it is annoyingly close to what the show was doing with RumpleBelle in season 4b.

She loves him, but he's a terrible person. She wants to help him, but she can't let innocent (foolish) people be hurt. She doesn't want anything bad to happen to him or for him to suffer in any way, and yet she is okay with throwing him over the Town Line (what Belle did) or into a jail cell (what most OCs do).

Now I shall admit that not all fanfic of this sort falls into this category, but most of it either falls into this category, or the 'I made my own character, and now my fic doesn't make a lick of sense.' Or the 'still not done yet (After many years and I'm probably dead or in a comma).' Categories, which aren't much better.

And like I said this one is here for purely selfish reasons and those reasons are that this was the first one I found, and I searched quite a bit, that gave Gold an OC that tries to help him.

This OC also wants to help the heroes, and is in fact very protective of a few of them, but the author has done a brilliant job being able to find logical ways of explaining why her character must help both Rumpelstiltskin and the heroes. And this OC that wasn't like Belle who tries to force change to make him perfect, she is able in her own way to naturally nurture, if not a better man, then at least a more stable one.

I think most of this stems from the fact that unlike most people, the author decided that her character would be a villain, and in some ways proud to be a villain, and so there's not that annoying 'I'm holier than thou and therefore you must be the one to change (unrealistically) 'attitude.

And she doesn't fall into the trappings of most OC writings that I mentioned earlier, where nothing makes sense anymore, and has managed to avoid the trappings of a Mary Sue character. Combined with the fact that she normally updates one of her many many stories every day (unless real life gets in the way, but who hasn't had that problem) his story is an absolutely wonderful read, and it has two sequels already out and complete and one more at least in the works.


	3. The Goblin and the Small Town Sheriff

The Goblin and the Small Town Sheriff

Reason for being here – First real GoldenSwan.

And it's by Twyla Mercedes, enough said.

When I say the first GoldenSwan, I don't mean the first story with that pairing, but it was the first one that was 1) not just a one shot, 2) is finished, 3) doesn't have the Gold be Henry's father angle be why they get together, and 4) found some way for it not to be just Emma messing with Gold and ending up liking him, or it being the for filament of their favor deal.

Now there are a billion Golden Swan one shots, and a ton that never finished, but this was the first one that said, ok, why not put them together, make a story out of it, and not have it be that ten years ago Gold was out of town and slept with Emma and nine mounts later Henry was born. Or Gold says to fulfill the favor deal, kiss me, and the rest is history.

Of course it was the first one to say drugs and booze would begin the road to true love, but details details, I happen to be a fan of that road.

That Twyla Mercedes managed to have a great deal of fun with this story. She took a grossly underused pairing and not only made it work, but considering how early it was in the entire series she made it all her own. Her own rules for magic, her own relationships, her own characters, her own side stories and back stories and upside down stories to go along with the series.

She also managed, back in season one, to predict the appearance of not only the Snow Queen, but the Wicked Witch of the West. Now she may have made them her own characters, with all the before mentioned stories to them, but there's a part of me, especially during most of season 4B that wished that one of those relationships, any of them at all, was what was actually going on with Rumpelstiltskin instead of the fiasco that we dare not name.

And the sequel, **The Goblin and his Bride**, is also a favorite.


	4. The Olivia Files: I'm Gonna Make

The Olivia Files: I'm Gonna Make This Place Your Home

by frozen belle and olivia

Reason for being in Truly Unique – It's Truly Bad (with an artistic flourish).

I shall admit, I am putting this on for slightly personal reasons.

This person comes to me and asks if I will put their story up in my community. I look into it, and see that it's not very good.

The plot is a Fangirl of the show is Gold's and Belle's kid, not very original and the editing is not very good.

Everything is just one long paragraph, she some how managed to put a snowflake in place of the 'O' in Frozen, along with some purple hearts and teddybear heads.

The way things are strung together is hard to follow. I'm 50% certain the main caricature and her friend are in line to see Hunger Games 2 and then time warp and are in line for Frozen, and then are back to going to see Hunger Games again.

So, the editing is bad, the flow of things is not there, the story is, just because of what it is, not very good.

I think this author has potential to be better, but I don't see it here.

But this author doesn't know that, because after telling her that I would add this story to the community if she fixed just her editing, she said she would, and then blocked me.

So, maybe she will one day fix this story many problems, maybe not, unfortunately she won't let me ask her. But, seeing as how she has yet to fix the problems and it has been a few days, I'd say that for now, it's a sub par piece of work that is hard to look at.

So why is it here you ask, is it just here because I think it's bad. No, I said artistic flourish, the bear heads and purple hearts is interesting, I have never seen that before on the site, so if for no other reason, look at it for that.


	5. A Royal Friend

A Royal Friend

by frozen belle and olivia

Reason for being in Truly Unique – Proof of potential. And I like the idea.

I shall admit, I am putting this on also for slightly personal reasons.

I like this story, I like the idea, and those of you that follow some of my other works might some day see why. (Assuming I actually start publishing more then once in a blue moon.)

This story, unlike the others made this author, is original, cute, the transitioning works, and other then the fact that it is again all one paragraph; I can find no fault in it.

This is one of the reasons why I always look at other things authors have done, even if I don't like another work of theirs, and the one that this author asked me to put up that I reviewed previously, I hated.

But just as bad as that one was, this one is just as good.

I truly do wish this author the best, and hope they do well. But I, being the bad speller I am, will be the first one to tell you that editing and so forth has killed many a good story, and that unless you write something that grabs you the first line and doesn't let go, no one can escape the need to observe at least the most basic of grammar rules, namely, that when ever something changes (location, person speaking, time, etc.) you need a new paragraph.

Case in point. Authors like Twyla Mercedes, LizzeXX, Ravenclaw992, and DaesGatling are authors that have always worked hard to produce a good product, and it shows. Even when you hate something they've done, you can't help but keep reading.

Now, I'd read something they wrote on a napkin in crayon with they're bad hand upside down, because I know that if I can make out the illegible words, I will find a masterpiece.

Other authors, myself chief among them, do not have that luxury. We need to work hard, edit, proofread, and check the Oxford and Webster's dictionary to make sure we spelled every word right. Because even though I try to make a story half as good as one of theirs, it's not even ¼ as good, and one editing mistake or spelling error and I get a thousand bad reviews.

So, I showed you a bad story from this author that is not worth the effort of trying to figure out what is going on, here is one that I think is worth that effort, especially if she keeps going on it.


End file.
